


Fair Warning

by honestgrins



Series: To Rely on the Kindness of Strangers [73]
Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: F/M, i'm mostly ignoring canon outside of Katherine being locked in the tomb, s2 AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-05
Updated: 2019-04-05
Packaged: 2020-01-05 11:08:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,794
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18364793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honestgrins/pseuds/honestgrins
Summary: 313etanonymys: Can you do like a drabble where Katherine warns Caroline about Klaus or something?😍😘💖🔥 (TVD S2 AU)





	Fair Warning

Katherine crashed against the invisible barrier, seething as Caroline waved cheerily through the doorway. Her tears of terror were instead replaced by a beatific smile at having successfully trapped the she-devil. “What did you do?”

“Nothing you don’t deserve,” Caroline answered. Her eyes tracked over the doppelganger’s shoulder to where Stefan was hiding. “Have fun!” She turned to leave and rejoin the party, but it seemed Katherine wasn’t done with her yet.

“Everything I do, I do for a reason!” she shouted. “You’ll be sorry when _he_ comes, and I’ll be there to make sure of it.”

Forcing herself not to look back, Caroline couldn’t help the frozen feeling of dread crawling down her spine. _When who comes?_

* * *

“His name is Klaus,” Elena explained as they hiked through the woods, each step closer to the tomb worrying Caroline just a bit more. “He’s supposed to be the oldest, most dangerous vampire, and I need more information that Damon and Stefan refuse to help me get."

The unease grew to a seize of panic that stopped Caroline in her tracks, the sudden motion happening too quickly with her still-new vampire abilities. "If Stefan doesn't want you talking to Katherine, he has to have a good reason. Maybe we should leave, convince him to come back with us."

Rolling her eyes, Elena didn’t even pause, her pace even along the familiar paths of the woods. “It’s not like she can hurt me, she’s sealed in the tomb. And we can’t get her out, so there’s no chance she can manipulate us to break the spell.”

Caroline wasn’t proud of the moment it took her brain to process, only for her thoughts to immediately spill from her mouth. “Is that the only reason you asked me and not Bonnie?”

"No," Elena answered as patiently as she could. "Stefan would also be pissed if I came her without vampire supervision in case something goes wrong. Do you want to leave?"

"Not without you." Mustering her courage and anxiety, she followed Elena down through the church ruins. Her enhanced senses for both smell and magic left her recoiling, but she think she managed to hide it. Mostly. By the time she'd rolled the giant rock door away from the mouth of the tomb, she felt almost confident with the energizing feat of strength. 

But then the dark cavern seemed to grow darker the longer they waited for Katherine to appear. Elena reached into her tote, and Caroline's fangs nearly dropped at the blood bad she pulled out. It took more strength than she realized to stop herself from launching toward where Elena tossed it past the safe line, her eyes greedily staring at the jostling liquid inside when it landed. Only the raspy breath coming from the starving vampire it was intended for allowed her to finally look away.

Dragging her feet as she leaned heavily against the stone wall to help her walk, Katherine looked...rough. Still, her expression was haughty as ever when she saw Elena sitting just outside her prison. “What are you doing here?”

“I want answers about Klaus, and I think you have them.. No funny business, I swear.”

Katherine raised an eyebrow. “That doesn’t sound very fun for me, you see, so I’ll pass.”

She couldn’t help it, her fangs dropped as anger overwhelmed her sensitive emotional balance. If she could find a therapist that specialized in the supernatural needs of the recently dead, Caroline would be all over it. Faced with the woman who killed her and the impertinent personality of such bitch, her already frayed nerves were obviously on a razor’s edge. “Just take the peace offering and answer her questions, it’s not that hard.”

“Or what?” Canting her head to the side, Katherine turned that teasing gaze on her. “You’ll nag at me from the other side of that pesky line? Unless you’d like to join me. We could have fun, Caroline,” she teased, voice full of promise - whether for violence or more pleasurable experiences, Caroline didn’t know. “And trust me, when Klaus comes, you’ll wish you were in this damn tomb. You all actually did me a favor with this set-up, I’ll be the safest girl in town.”

Elena leaned forward eagerly. “So you do know Klaus.”

For a split second, smoothed faster than any human sight could register, Katherine Pierce actually looked scared. But she made her way to the ground as gracefully as possible and snatched the blood bag up to drink. After a longing pull of the straw, her eyes flicked up to her mirror image. “Yep. It’s cute you all think I’m the big bad, when you have no clue what evil is really out there. I do what I need to survive. Klaus...he doesn’t stop at survival. Try to stop him, and he’ll make your life a living hell.”

“Is that what he did to you?” Caroline asked, surprised at the wistful warning and that it was coming from _her_  of all people. It bled of bad memories and worse nightmares; a bad feeling crawled up her spine at what might have haunted her murderer’s centuries.

Licking her lips, Katherine squinted up at her, as though measuring her up. She smirked when Caroline’s back straightened in reaction. “He wishes. But now he's got bigger fish to fry than little, old me."

"You know what he wants."

Her eyes rolled before they landed on Elena, who patiently watched for any reaction to the accusation. Katherine, however, didn't seem all that willing to rise to the bait. Shrugging, she jutted her chin toward the tote bag Elena still held in her lap. They stared at each other for an uncomfortable moment, the tension making Caroline shift in her stance, though she didn't dare interrupt. 

Finally, Elena frowned and pulled out another blood bag. She lifted it in warning. "What does he want?"

"You," Katherine sighed. "He needs a doppelgänger, a human one. I ruined his plans five hundred years ago by transitioning, something he has yet to forget or forgive."

Caroline shook her head. "Then why not come get her? Mystic Falls isn't exactly a fortress."

Tongue clucking, Katherine's expression turned almost pitying. "You're not asking the right question. When the time is right, I'm sure Klaus will do just that. Violently, with a lot of collateral damage." Her eyes flicked down the line of Caroline's body. "By the way, how is Tyler? I've been so worried about him since he triggered his _curse_ ," she whispered, like it was dirty word.

A sudden fear clenched around Caroline's throat. "Leave him out of this."

"Too late." The sing-song tone grated on her nerves, and she really didn't like the way Katherine's teasing gaze stayed trained on _her_. "Tell me, baby vamp, what do you know about the curse of the sun and moon?”

* * *

They spent a good hour with Katherine, gleaning every detail and rumor they could about her dealings with Klaus and what trouble he might bring for them. But even days later, all Caroline had in her mind were more questions and a deep, deep fear she couldn't shake. Between that and trying to keep up the human act for her mom and Matt, she was a jittery mess scrambling for control. 

And then Tyler went missing. 

A part of her hated to even notice, let alone worry for him after the kidnapping and torture he enabled at the hands of his uncle’s pack. Carol had approached her directly at a fundraiser, though, concerned that he’d stopped answering texts. “He knows better than this, to miss so much school,” she said, near frantic despite the breezy smile she held for the other guests. “To go camping, of all things, with some people he just met. I know you’ve had a falling out, but if you hear from him...”

Caroline had brushed it off as wolf business; the closest thing to camping she’d ever seen Tyler do is pass out at the watering hole after a particularly impressive keg stand, so it stood to reason that it was a convenient cover for running around the woods in nothing but fur. Sending a text was the most she was willing to do. As the days dragged on with no answer, especially given the groveling he’d tried to do before he left, she reluctantly felt her own concern growing. 

Things didn’t click in her mind until Damon made an off-hand remark about one less wolf to beat to the curse. “Not that Lockwood is likely to solve any puzzle first. Katherine had it right, wolves make better brawn than brains, best used for cannon fodder."

"They're still people," Stefan had sighed.

But Damon just shrugged. "Collateral damage, whatever."

_Collateral damage_.

Horror seeping into her awareness, Caroline almost charged her way back to the tomb. The rock barrier rolled away with a crash, her control frayed by sudden realization. "You've been collecting us," she accused, her voice echoing into the darkness. "You're working for Klaus, to help him break this curse."

Silence held for a long moment, then a slow clap rang out. Katherine's croak was strained, but her amusement clear. "Give the girl a prize." Clawing her way toward the entrance, the older vampire's eyes were oddly intent for the physical weakness she was showing. Her skin had become gray and flaky in the week since their visit, the slender frame Caroline so envied in her doppelgänger wasted away to look almost skeletal. "But I'm no one's lackey, cupcake, and definitely not Klaus's."

Caroline frowned as she crept to the edge of the doorway, fighting down the impulse to take a step away. Even without blood and spelled into captivity, Katherine would always prick her confidence for fear of dying again; worse, she was pretty sure the scheme already put into place was going to get her killed anyway. "Because of what he did to your family," she guessed, though the story had haunted her dreams. Finding nothing but blood and devastation where her home stood left her waking in a cold sweat, a sudden fear only soothed by the sound of her mother's undisturbed snores in the next room.

"Klaus is a monster," Katherine answered in a dry whisper. "Whatever you think of me, I can promise he'll deliver tenfold. I've seen it.”

"Then why do his evil bidding?"

Her withered tongue traced her cracked lips, eyes closed in apparent exhaustion. "I've been on the run for five hundred years, and not once have I been able to outsmart him other than to keep running. Mystic Falls has a human doppelgänger, a moonstone, a werewolf, a very powerful Bennett witch, and a vampire." Her eyes flicked open, squarely landed on Caroline. "If that's not a ticket for freedom, then I don't know what is."

Sneering with more venom than she knew she could muster, Caroline curled her hands into fists to keep from tearing the bitch limb from limb. "I should make Bonnie let you out so _you_  can be the goddamned sacrifice."

"Funny, love," a new voice said, its lilting accent confusing and endearing all at once. "I was thinking the same thing."

About to turn, Caroline froze as Katherine scrambled further into the tomb, like she was trying to disappear entirely. The natural curiosity she felt at the stranger was soon overpowered by an utter awareness of the power he was exuding, made worse considering she hadn't noticed him sneak into the cavern. Slowly, she moved to face him and the threat he posed, careful to keep her back to the solid rock wall. Shorter than she’d imagined and sporting a deceptively pleasant smile, she found a very attractive man staring at her with obvious calculation. "Klaus."

His smile spread, deepening the dimples she hadn’t noticed yet. Added to the artful curls and pink lips, he might have stepped right out of an angelic painting rather than the hell he supposedly ruled as the Original Vampire. But she’d seen a pretty face and gotten a monster before, and Caroline wasn’t fooled. “I’d be impressed for one so young to recognize me, but I think Katerina’s been telling tales. Surely a smart girl like you knows better than to believe a word out of her mouth.”

Wetting her suddenly dry lips, Caroline did know better than to let her eyes slide away from Klaus with his focus solely on her. “I’m something of a gossip. Information is valuable, and even bad sources tell the truth sometimes.”

Eyebrows lifting, Klaus took a step forward. Once more, she had to fight the instinct to move back. Her fear was more rational considering he wasn’t magically locked behind a barrier, but she refused to give him the satisfaction of showing the terror he inspired. “I happen to appreciate information, sweetheart. Perhaps you’d be willing to share?”

She forced a smile of her own. “Sorry. Mom said to never talk to strangers or crazy old vampires intent on killing my friends.”

“Ah, but the good sheriff isn’t a fan of any vampires,” Klaus said, eyes narrowed on her reaction. “Is she, Caroline?”

Swallowing the sudden lump in her throat, her teeth clenched to keep from trembling.

Klaus smirked as he closed the gap between them, and he raised a knuckle just under her chin. “Now, Katerina would say otherwise, but I believe family is important. I wouldn’t dream of harming your mother, and I’m prepared to make assurances to that fact.”

_Slaughtered, all of them. The entire village only because they knew me._ Katherine’s story rang in her ears, and the hands that wrought that destruction within inches of her throat. And he was promising to keep her mom safe. “Why?”

His head canted to the side, like he was assessing her. “Because I think you might be the key to solving my little curse, dear Caroline, and I’d like your help.”

“And if I say no?”

Lips curling up, Klaus let a thumb coast along the edge of her jaw. “I have many means of persuasion, love. I’d hate to have to choose harsher methods.”

Caroline breathed in deeply, her brain working in overdrive to think through her options. Almost tempted to dive into the tomb, she knew it would leave her mom and her friends to the harsh methods he promised. Worse, she would be helpless to do anything but watch Katherine desiccate, knowing the same would happen to her.

Had Klaus truly wanted to kill her, she would have been dead already. She didn’t particularly want to help him break the stupid curse, mostly because it ended up with her also dead. Even if she managed to earn enough goodwill to save herself, Elena and Tyler were still at risk. 

But if she refused, they’d all probably die anyway.

“What do you want me to do?”

Klaus just tapped her chin, immediately stepping back, though she didn’t relax her posture. “I want that information you’re so keen on collecting, love. The Salvatores, the Bennett witch, your precious Elena. I like knowing the pieces on the board.”

She scoffed. “This isn’t a game.”

“Sure it is,” he laughed, looking at her like she was a cute animal chasing its own shadow. “Think it over, as to whether you’d like to play on the winning side.” He nudged his head back toward the gaping hole in the stone. “You’ve already seen what it means to lose.”

Biting her lip, Caroline watched him walk to the edge of the cavern where he’d make his exit. “I don’t want anyone to die.”

He had the audacity to wink at her. “Then it sounds like you ought to win, Caroline.” Easily jumping up to the church ruins, Klaus was gone, leaving her to consider his offer - as vague as it was.

"You just landed on the wrong list, blondie," Katherine croaked, leaning out of the darkness just enough for Caroline to make out the shape of her. "Palling around with Klaus is only going to get you killed."

"It's your fault he's here at all," she hissed back, nerves frayed to the point of exhaustion.

A huff of laughter, then a ragged cough. "To be fair, he did seem to like you. Didn't even draw any blood. Must be getting mature in his old age," she whispered teasingly. "He is pretty great in bed, if that helps. You'll still end up dead, but at least you'll have some fun first."

She wanted to scream. "Shut up."

"Whatever," Katherine sighed as Caroline stomped away. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Hopping out of the cavern without nearly the grace Klaus had managed, Caroline tried to focus on anything other than the idea of Klaus's bed and what it'd mean to pick him.


End file.
